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Why Do Hot Dogs Come in Packs of 10 and Buns in 8s or 12s? A Demand-Side Investigation

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  • Gerstner, Eitan
  • Hess, James D

Abstract

This paper presents a theory that yields insight into the determination of package prices and sizes. Consumer heterogeneity in consumption rates, storage costs, and transactions costs (costs of making trips to the store) explains differences in package sizes and unit prices. In the model, fully-informed consumers and a monopolist seller pursue optimizing behavior. The seller chooses package sizes and prices to maximize profits, and the consumers select package sizes that maximize their utilities. The authors show that consumer heterogeneity may induce the seller to offer more than one size and that larger sizes would be sold either at unit-price discounts or unit-price premiums. Welfare implications and empirical tests of the theory are presented. Copyright 1987 by the University of Chicago.

Suggested Citation

  • Gerstner, Eitan & Hess, James D, 1987. "Why Do Hot Dogs Come in Packs of 10 and Buns in 8s or 12s? A Demand-Side Investigation," The Journal of Business, University of Chicago Press, vol. 60(4), pages 491-517, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:ucp:jnlbus:v:60:y:1987:i:4:p:491-517
    DOI: 10.1086/296410
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    Cited by:

    1. Cohen, Andrew, 2008. "Package size and price discrimination in the paper towel market," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 26(2), pages 502-516, March.
    2. Schmitz, Silke & Abdulai, Awudu, 2006. "Empirical Analysis of Price Setting and Quantity Surcharges in the German Food Sector," 2006 Annual meeting, July 23-26, Long Beach, CA 21419, American Agricultural Economics Association (New Name 2008: Agricultural and Applied Economics Association).
    3. Gerstner, Eitan & Klein, Katherine, 1990. "How To Quote A Price -- 0.50 Each Or 2 For 1.00?," Department of Economics and Business - Archive 259456, North Carolina State University, Department of Economics.
    4. Kenneth W. Clements, 2006. "Pricing and Packaging: The Case of Marijuana," The Journal of Business, University of Chicago Press, vol. 79(4), pages 2019-2044, July.
    5. J. Miguel Villas-Boas, 1998. "Product Line Design for a Distribution Channel," Marketing Science, INFORMS, vol. 17(2), pages 156-169.
    6. Yonezawa, Koichi & Richards, Timothy J., 2016. "Competitive Package Size Decisions," Journal of Retailing, Elsevier, vol. 92(4), pages 445-469.
    7. Rojas, Christian & Jaenicke, Edward C. & Page, Elina T., 2024. "Shrinkflation? Quantifying the impact of changes in package size on food inflation," 2024 Annual Meeting, July 28-30, New Orleans, LA 343770, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    8. Nana Adrian, 2019. "Price Discrimination and Salient Thinking," Diskussionsschriften dp1906, Universitaet Bern, Departement Volkswirtschaft.
    9. Babu Nahata & Serguei Kokovin & Evgeny Zhelobodko, 2003. "Package Sizes, Tariffs, Quantity Discount and Premium," General Economics and Teaching 0307002, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    10. Girju, Marina & Prasad, Ashutosh & Ratchford, Brian T., 2013. "Pure Components versus Pure Bundling in a Marketing Channel," Journal of Retailing, Elsevier, vol. 89(4), pages 423-437.
    11. Awudu Abdulai & Christian Kuhlgatz & Silke Schmitz, 2009. "Empirical investigation of price setting and quantity surcharges in the German food sector," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 25(3), pages 331-350.
    12. Oded Koenigsberg & Rajeev Kohli & Ricardo Montoya, 2010. "Package Size Decisions," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 56(3), pages 485-494, March.
    13. Agrawal, Jagdish & Grimm, Pamela E. & Srinivasan, Narasimhan, 1994. "Quantity Surcharges on Groceries," Research Reports 25179, University of Connecticut, Food Marketing Policy Center.
    14. Raghuram Iyengar & Kamel Jedidi, 2012. "A Conjoint Model of Quantity Discounts," Marketing Science, INFORMS, vol. 31(2), pages 334-350, March.
    15. Paul W. Dobson & Eitan Gerstner, 2010. "For a Few Cents More: Why Supersize Unhealthy Food?," Marketing Science, INFORMS, vol. 29(4), pages 770-778, 07-08.
    16. Foubert, Bram & Gijsbrechts, Els, 2010. "Please or Squeeze? Brand performance implications of constrained and unconstrained multi-item promotions," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 202(3), pages 880-892, May.
    17. Sanatan Shreay & Hayley H. Chouinard & Jill J. McCluskey, 2016. "Product Differentiation by Package Size," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 32(1), pages 3-15, January.
    18. Peng, Jing & Zhang, Jianghua & Nie, Tengfei & Zhu, Yangguang & Du, Shaofu, 2020. "Pricing and package size decisions in crowdfunding," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 143(C).
    19. Kokovin Sergey & Zhelobodko Evgeniy, 2008. "Diagnosing Efficiency of Distortion in Discrete Screening," EERC Working Paper Series 08/02e, EERC Research Network, Russia and CIS.
    20. Dhruv Goel & Anushka Goyal & Ishaan Sand, 2024. "Quantity surcharge, competition and package size: evidence from India," Journal of Revenue and Pricing Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 23(5), pages 452-460, October.
    21. Michaela Draganska & Dipak C. Jain, 2006. "Consumer Preferences and Product-Line Pricing Strategies: An Empirical Analysis," Marketing Science, INFORMS, vol. 25(2), pages 164-174, 03-04.
    22. Kokovin, Sergey & Nahata, Babu & Zhelobodko, Evgeny, 2008. "Why quantity premia are rare?," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 100(1), pages 153-156, July.

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